Random Beer Review Numero Uno

Franziskaner Weissbier

          So typically, I am not one who likes to sit around and over analyze beer over the computer. I love Untappd and pay a lot of attention to what people say about the beers that they have but I also like it because they only have 140 characters to say what they want about the beers that they have (I repeated myself on purpose to make a point). I do feel however, that I would enjoy expounding upon some of the more interesting finds that have been discovered in my "backyard" of Hartford County, Connecticut.

               Yesterday I found myself cruising around town in my two day old car on a mission for my grandfather to one of the liquor "depots" in town that I'm not a big fan of. He gave me the green light ahead of time to buy something if I wanted, so I naturally looked for something that I hadn't had in the past. I picked up a Franziskaner Weissbier simply because I was talking about this particular brand with my co-worker Traci and because I dig the monk on the label. I also knew that I was going to investigate and expound upon this particular beer simply because it's my blog and I feel like it.

             The Weissbier pours a nice spun straw (think Rapunzel) with a pretty craggy white head (think Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future). The carbonation on this baby was exactly what I have come to love and expect from a well made Heffe, with small but powerful bubbles that really add to this styles overall attractiveness. It was unfiltered and thus pretty cloudy due to the residual yeasts that were left in suspension when this beer was bottled.

            Typically Heffes are refreshing, and often smell of bananas, cloves or bubblegum (or maybe an interesting combination of the three) and once again this beer was no exception. Added to this though, I picked up notes of citrus peel, almond and green apple that gave this particular offering a bit of a different scent profile. I also got a decent amount of spicy or peppery-ness on the nose due to the use of heavy amounts of wheat. I want to add an addendum here to the first line of this paragraph for those who are not that familiar with beer. (Franziskaner Weissbier is brewed following the German Reinheitsgebot or German Purity Law of 1516. This means that there are not actually any bananas, cloves or bubblegum flavor added to the beer. In order to be classified under this doctrine, German beers need to be brewed with only water, base malts, hops and yeast, so those lovely scents that are kicking your nose in the senses are from these babies).

           Taste-wise, this beer fell in line with exactly what I would have expected from a revered brewery like Franziskaner. Crisp, and floral with a nice pepper kick, this beer was really refreshing and bright on my palate. This is the kind of beer that you want to sip on while you watch the neighborhood kid sweat while he mows your lawn. I particularly liked this beer though, because it reminded me of where a lot of our countries brewing creativity came from. Our beer industry really owes a lot to the Bavarian and Czech immigrants that brought these style a long with them when they came here in the mid to late 19th century.

           Overall, I would never hesitate to sip on a beer that was brewed following the Reinheitsgebot. Germany knows beer like I know beer (lol!!!!), so if you see it on a shelf, pick it up and sip on something!

@CTbeerfiend

City Steam Winter Brewfest 2013

          Last Thursday, I had the pleasure of attending City Steam's second annual Winter Beer Fest. Being the "geek" that I am, I am usually excited to get my hands on any beer that I can. Imagine though, if you will, how it feels to be surrounded by microbreweries, and knowing that each and every ounce of liquid in those draft lines or bottles is coming from your "backyard".

          In my humble opinion, brewers are some of the most generous people when it comes to sharing their craft with the surrounding community. I'm used to the standard tasting pour that usually consists of just enough beer to get an ok sense of what you are tasting. At this Fest though, the pours were generous, and I was able to complement them with a delicious buffet.

          The craft beer community was out in full force, and it is always nice to see some familiar faces like my friend Tony from Back East Brewing Company (Bloomfield).  Tony represents our community well, and continues to display what great local beer should be. By the way, I ruse everyone to go out and try Back East as soon as you can! 

          What I also. Enjoy about these events, is the opportunity to go out and meet new friends and network with people who share like-minded interests. Lani and I were standing in line trying to tag a beer on Untappd when from behind us I hear "friend us, friend us". It turns out, that the people who were behind us in line were another couple of Untappd users and knew us from some of our previous posts at the event. They were great, and we were soon making beer talk and comparing notes. Lana even found out that she knew the gentleman through some classes that they had taken together in college. Needless to say, we quickly made plans to go out and get social with them.

          I would certainly like to take the time to personally thank City Steam and the brewers that came out to serve their fabulous local products. I would also like to thank my new friend Bryon Turner who I've actually known of for quite some time. Bryon runs the CT Beer Trail which is an amazing source of information for anyone who is interested in the beer happenings within our state. I finally got the chance to purchase my Trailblazers card, and I look forward to putting it to good use.

          In summation, when I think of beer, I think of community, and there truly is no better representation of this mindset an a festival like this at brings brewers, boozers, bloggers and beer snobs all together.

Several Experiences at a Beer Tasting -OR-

The World's Most Boring Blog Post Title

          The other day I had the privilege of visiting a liquor store that I hadn't visited in the past.. Maximum Beverage in West Hartford had taken out some space in the local rag (read newspaper) to advertise a stout and porter beer tasting. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't really expect to hear much more about beer than I already know (that is unless I'm at a brewery or talking with people who actually manufacture the stuff). It's always exciting though, to see what someone else can bring to the table and the ways that they convey information.

          I've already covered stouts is a past post, and I could certainly make you regret asking me a bout porters (maybe in a future post ;)), but I'm not here to really go into depth on either. I feel that people need to understand the importance of going out and trying things in these (often free) public forums. Not only can the average beer drinker learn a lot about the "whys" of their favorite styles and get a good history lesson. They get their opportunity to share the experience with a group of random people, get their questions answered and maybe even get a nice buzz.

          The presenter of this particular tasting was a representative from a local distribution company who admitted that he favored Irish Stouts and often got nervous around large crowds. With this in mind, I was surprised at how well he loosened up once people started getting into the beer and began to ask questions and make polite conversation with their neighbors. I was at an advantage, and happy to share the experience with my girlfriend and her parents who can both "hold their own" when it comes to imbibing. He had created a great handout that covered each of the six beers that we had, which further contributed to epiphany and conversation among tasters.

          Technically, we tasted these beers from "lightest" to "heaviest", starting with the Porters (Samuel Smith and Founders). Which, according to our presenter, did not actually start out as a different style than stouts but were simply a lighter and easier drinking version. These are two great examples among many (I was happy to hear that Mr. Hall liked both).

         After the Porters, we began sipping through a few great stouts. We began with Sierra Nevada's, which I somehow have not had and which was on the milder end of the stout spectrum. We cycled through Young's Double Chocolate and Back East Imperial and ended with Tiny by Weyerbacher which is anything but what its name implies.

          Beer was only half of what makes going to these tastings fun and interesting. To share the experience of tasting something like beer with people for the first time really is amazing. It's neat to watch people hold their glasses to the light and try to describe how dark a beer is or what it's mouthfeel is. I really hope that each person that I shared this experience with will go home and try every beer that hits their lips with such interest. This is a crash course in how to tear the walls down that change beer into BEER. So, in ending, ask your local beer dude about what they might be tasting soon. Many times they do these events weekly and will often invite reps from specific breweries to go through a cycle of a specific spot's beer. You'll thank me, I promise.

@CTbeerfiend

A WORD OR TWO ABOUT IMPENDING DOOM (SNOWSTORMS)....AND BEER

          So I got the idea for this post when I was out fighting the masses off at my local grocery store. Here in the Northeast, we're famous for moderate winters (with heavy snowfall on and off), but even more famous (lately) for losing power for weeks at a time when one of these storms occur. Now honestly, I have a laundry list of beer-related things that I need to be doing (updating my scrap book, planning future events), but then I realized that this is the perfect opportunity for us all to hunker down and reflect upon our favorite beverage.

          As most of you know, there are many different beers for any occasion.There are beers that are made for the summer- light, crisp and often citrus or hop-based. There are beers that are meant to taste like a barbecue pit, or even ones that are reminiscent of ripe fruit..... So what, do you ask, is the perfect beer to hunker down with during a couple feet of falling hell?

          Right at the moment I am having a Samuel Adams Boston lager (and listening to Dvorak's New World Symphony, which is fabulous I might add), and it is the perfect " in the moment" beer. Full-flavored and all purpose, this same beer would be perfect to sneak into a movie theater. It coats the tongue well, and really gets the job done as far as taste goes. With lots of grain of the back, I literally want to join the Sons of Liberty and head out to fight the Red Coats.

          One of the reasons why this libation is so great is because any beer can be this " in the moment" beer that I speak of. What the hell are you really in the mood for? Although we can all argue that some just should never have been brewed, most beer can bee good when it is enjoyed under the proper circumstances. The catch is though, that these circumstances are different for everyone.

          You should be asking yourself what beer would make this particular moment even better or in my example..... "If I could be snowed in with 12 beers, which 12 would I choose". I suppose I could be more formal about all of this, and douse you guys with a lesson in flavor profiles, but hey, we're gonna be snowed in for awhile so just get to beering and let me know what you have ;)

@CTbeerfiend

A Thing or Two About Festivals.....

          One of the coolest things about being an active member (read fan) of the craft beer community is that breweries and other beer-related organizations love to throw festivals in order to  get people to come out and drink. I had the extreme pleasure of being recon-ed into one of these festivals (thanks Mrs. Hall) today and felt that it was high time that someone really shed some light on these fantastic beer-themed trade shows.

          Although The Sun 10th Anniversary Winefest was geared toward wine and other wine-related businesses, I have to take my hat off to the the people at Mohegan Sun for setting your boy up with a pretty neat section just for my tasting pleasure (read beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeer!!!!!!). I was surprised to find a number of craft (and I admit, a few big players) represented in this very intimate setting. If you haven't been, imagine tables filled with swag material and lots of ice cold beer accompanied by a representative who loves to tell you about how good his/her product is.

          I really enjoyed getting to the beer early ( I had a nice buzz before 12) and getting the opportunity to talk to a number of sales reps from breweries including Dogfish Head, Heavy Seas, Merchant Du Vin, Smuttynose, and Blue Point to name just a few. When they heard that I did a blog, they all tended to sidle up and ask me what I thought about their product (I said I liked it even if I didn't) and wanted to talk to me not only about their beer, but what I did. This is one reason why I enjoy this community so much. We as beer drinkers are generally interested in each other. People often dont like to let us out in public because they often associate us with the fights that get caught on camera at sporting events. In all honesty though, we are a peace keeping bunch who like to pontificate about Lauter Tuns and the amount and time that Brettanomyces Lambicus takes to funkify our favorite Belgian Lambics.

          I guess what I'm really trying to say, is that you don't see Coca Cola or bottled water conventions for a reason.Us beer geeks have a lot to talk about. This industry continues to grow and change daily, and one of the easiest ways that we can continue to grow is to pass on information by holding these meet-and-greets. I don't want to brag but I know a lot about brewing and the beer industry, but what a great way to pick up more knowledge and to meet the face of the people making your favorite beverage.

Final Thought: If you love beer, and get the opportunity to go to a beer festival, shell out the freakin dough and have a blast. This is about so much more than the drinking. Let me know what you think....

@CTbeerfiend

Beer in my Backyard????

          So what exactly does Beer in my Backyard mean? Do I literally have a fermentation tank behind my house where I make sweet sweet boozey magic? Not exactly. Well I suppose I could, but that's not really what I'm going for here.

          I chose this name because I think that the title really applies to what we are seeing in the craft beer community at this very moment. In my backyard, it feels like every time I turn around there is a great new local brew to try. Connecticut breweries are starting to pop up at a larger rate than at any time in our states past (a trend that is common in almost all other states), and are beginning to make a mark far past New England. Last year, I saw the inaugural Mohegon Sun BrewFest pop up out of nowhere to bring people from near and far together for a great introduction to some of the great beer that this state has to offer.

          With the growth of this industry, and the variety and sheer amount of beer available from great breweries constantly increasing, we see a direct reflection when we go into Whole Foods Market, or our local beer cave alike. There is a lot of freaking great beer out there!!! The demand is high and people are willing to try anything that isn't associated with the Rockies (sorry guys :( ). Bars are also catching on and I've started seeing higher quality and "harder" to get beers on menus all over the state. On a visit to The Ginger Man (thanks Casey!) last year, I was treated to one of the best beer menus that I have seen to date. I recommend going out of your way for experiences like these because this is just what they are..... experiences.

          This blog goes well beyond the idea of popping the tab, or clawing the cap off of your favorite brew. It's about living this experience to the fullest and sharing your "backyard" stories with everyone. This isn't just about me and my "backyard". This is about a collective discovery and adventure in "our" beer world. Hopefully, any of you who really do enjoy good beer can think of something whether it be a specific beer, a great bar, or a memorable experience (or anything in between) that is worth sharing. This was intended to be your blog as much as it is mine. So I implore you, go out and live the experience... tell the world what your "backyard" has to offer.

@CTbeerfiend

Hello STOUT Fellow

A brief lesson on one of life's most mysterious brews

       When thinking about beer styles and flavor profiles, their aren't many that can match the complexity and wide range like a good old stout. Now I know that a lot of you can only equate the word stout with a certain famous Irish beer that was once billed as being good "for your strength", but this coal black beer has more attitude than Roseanne Barr at the DMV line.
          Stouts are neat because they can be sweet or or very bitter. They can be heavy and viscous like oil, or runny and rather one dimensional. They are often described as "meaty", "smokey" or "roasty" and can be brewed with anything from chocolate to shellfish (yes I said shellfish). Stouts are also quite fantastic because they age well in barrels and tend to take on some (or a lot) of the characteristics of these aging vessels.
          Although I wouldn't say that stouts are even near the top of my list of favorite beer styles, I find them to be quite intriguing. On a routine visit to a decent beer establishment, I would place my bet that you will see a few different examples of this marvelous style. As a matter of fact, this is exactly what happened when I went into Sonoma Wine and Spirits the other day. My good friend Ron had just gotten a case each of the Goose Island Night Stalker and the Goose Island Bourbon County Coffee Stout. Now, as I mentioned before, as a whole I'm not particularly fond of stouts, but I have had a few that are simply mind-blowingly good (North Coast Old Rasputin is one of my favorite U.S. stouts). At this point, I said to myself "wouldn't it be a great idea to try both of these stouts back-to-back and compare my notes on each." Gee Dustin, you sure are full of good ideas sometimes.
         I shared the beer with my girlfriend/tasting assistant Lani, and we both came up with a combined list for each. The Goose Island Night Stalker clocks in at 11.5% ABV and reminded me of a dark chocolate brownie. It pours black coffee black with very little head and had lingering aromas of molasses, espresso and had a bit of an earthy quality. With a slight burn in the chest, I took this one like a pro and Lani compared it's sweet/smokey combination to a good BBQ sauce.
         Where my first beer was sweet and surprisingly hoppy, the Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout brought to mind notes of coconut, marzipan and bourbon-soaked raisins. Very full bodied with a sea salt caramel finish, this beer played with my taste buds like a a fine index finger to a harp string. The coffee was surprisingly toned down, but also quite complex. Redolent of a latte (coffee with steamed milk), this beer was stellar! The balance between sweet and off-salty reminded me of kettle corn and for this factor alone I will definitely go out of my way to get another bottle.
         Goose Island is a great brewery and probably Illinois' most well known. In light of this little "competition" I just want to be clear that this process wasn't about declaring one beer better than the next. I simply wanted to illustrate how the same style of beer, from the same brewery (even bottled within about a week of one another) can taste so vastly different. if you're the least bit interested in beer, do your mouth a favor and drink lots of it. Try everything, and don't let one less than perfect beer keep you away from drinking that style. Stouts are a fabulous place to start, so if you get the chance, line up a few and let me know what you think. Happy stouting!

Beer in my Backyard blog
Twitter- @CTbeerfiend